Chapter 9: Love, Hate, and Fragarach the Vengeful Gale

What wonderful weather today! Ah, the sunlight feels wonderful on my skin!

Iris and I were traveling across the country in her wagon. The sun was warm, and I was in a great mood that day. I mean, yeah, apparently I’d been in a terrible state the previous night, what with the paralyzing agent circulating in my system, but I’d woken up feeling completely refreshed.

So, after receiving a whole bunch of gifts from everyone at LaVolle, we’d set off once more!

Iris, on the other hand, didn’t look too good. “Ugh,” she groaned. Her face was bright red, and she kept staring at her feet.

“Looking back,” she said quietly with a sigh, “that was entirely too audacious of me! I mean, yes, I merely wanted to contribute to the treatment, but snuggling up to a boy on a bed is just... Ohh...”

She’d been mumbling and muttering like this all day.

“But you know, his body was just so hot, and tight, and amazing! So that’s how it feels to have a young man in your arms... Wait, no, no! What am I thinking?! That’s just obscene! What happened last night was strictly therapeutic! I simply had his best interests in mind! Ughhh!”

Iris buried her face in her hands and began shaking her head. As adorable as her strange behavior was, it was about time we had a chat.

I clasped her hands, maybe a little too tightly, and turned her to face me.

“Pull yourself together, Iris!” I said.

“Wha?! C-Crow?!”

Yep, that’s me.

“Hey. You’ve been acting odd since morning. Did something happen?”

“Huh?! N-No, nothing! It’s just, um, I’m a bit ashamed of what I did last night, and I’m thinking about how I didn’t think that I could’ve thought of a more appropriate way to do it, and...”

Ashamed? What does she mean by that? I was with her all day yesterday, and I don’t think there was anything to be embarrassed about.

I mean, maybe she had something weighing on her conscience, but I wasn’t about to inquire.

“Iris. I won’t ask you what it is you’re ashamed of. I will, however, say that I find you to be a wonderful woman,” I said.

“A-A wonderful woman?!” she repeated.

“Yes. You’re beautiful, classy, kind...someone to look up to, I think. So, please: I don’t know the details, but don’t be so hard on yourself. I cherish and appreciate you.”

“Wow,” she uttered, her eyes filled with emotion. I was glad to see her so happy.

Honestly, it was a little embarrassing for me to say such a corny line to a woman, but if that was what it took to cheer her up, it was worth the shame. I was forever indebted to her for not treating me like a criminal, after all.

Iris chuckled. “Thank you, Crow. I couldn’t have picked a better apprentice,” she said.

“I’m glad to have met such an amazing mentor, myself,” I replied.

In the cramped wagon, we held hands, smiling at one another. I was happy to have helped such an angelic person feel a little better.

As soon as we crossed the thicket, Iris pointed ahead. “Oh, Crow, look! That’s the Spirit Wall of Berlin!”

I turned and saw a translucent, iridescent wall stretching across the field, resembling an aurora.

“A thousand years ago, there was a wall in a city called Berlin that divided the people,” she explained. “Under the influence of the aether, what remained of the wall gained the power to divide the land. Now you can create an immaterial barrier just by making a piece of the wall into a powder and sprinkling it on the ground.”

“Ah, so that’s how that long wall came to be.” Wow! I’d never left my hometown much, so I had no idea.

“So you see, thanks to that, aetherborn can no longer approach the imperial capital, and... Well, it’s not as great as it sounds.” Iris’s face fell as she continued, “I used to live in an outer village, myself. In recent years, the number of aetherborn has decreased even in the outer regions, but you’ll still find quite a few of them there. In comparison, the ‘safe zone’—that is, the area surrounding the capital, on the other side of that wall—is quite peaceful. People are so free of worry that they can afford to discriminate against others.”

“What?” Discriminate? What does she mean?

“Because their lives aren’t in any danger, they can indulge in things like the pursuit of knowledge and fashion,” she explained. “So to them, the people from outside the barrier—who have other, more pressing matters to worry about—are uncivilized savages. They call them names and hold them in contempt.”

“That’s terrible,” I said. Hey, they can’t treat me like a savage! I’m cursed by a murderous sword from hell, you know! It’ll make me cut their sorry asses to pieces! Bastards.

Oh, uh, that wasn’t savage of me at all, right? Right.

“Be ready, Crow. Not that everyone is that way, but there are some who would belittle you,” she warned me. “There’s this one colleague of mine in particular. She’s new to knighthood, you see, and she’s quite cruel. She seems to take issue with me and insists on antagonizing me every chance she gets.”

“You can’t be serious,” I said, incredulous. What kind of asshole would look down on an angel like Iris? Unacceptable!

The fury I felt must’ve been reflected in my features, because Iris smiled and asked charmingly, “Are you angry for my sake?”

Of course I was! I owed her a great debt!

She chuckled and continued, “I’m flattered, but pay it no mind. She’s from a noble family. Not someone you want to deal with in any capacity.”

“I see. In that case, I’ll just have to get back at her while no one’s looking,” I declared.

“Hey! You can’t do that,” she said, grinning widely.

Oh hell yeah, she loved my joke! She’s so adorable when she smiles! I love you, Iris! “That may have been a jest, Iris, but if any nobles truly do mean to harm you, please tell me. I’ll take care of it, I promise.” By lifting you onto my back and running the hell away, for instance.

“Oh, Crow!” she exclaimed bashfully. She seemed happy. Smiles really did suit her.

I was beaming back at my beloved mentor when the sound of pounding footsteps snapped me out of my reverie. Up ahead, a figure was charging straight at us at ultrahigh speed, a huge cloud of dust trailing behind them.

“What in the world is that?” I asked, dumbfounded.

On second glance, I could make out the shape of a petite young woman. She wore the same white military uniform as Iris, so she had to be a magus knight. (Though the skirt was on the short side and her shoulders were exposed. Kind of indecent, really.)

With silver hair and red eyes, she was strikingly pretty. Or she would have been, were her eyes not wide open and bloodshot, and the look on her face not absolutely demonic.

Wh-What the hell?! What’s with that girl?!

“Yoooooouuuuuu!” the mystery person shrieked. She was gripping a dagger enveloped in a purple glow and glaring straight at me.

Wait, she’s coming for me?!

“O Fragarach, the Vengeful Gale!” she chanted, “Bless me with the power of wind!”

Now the girl appeared to be a hurricane incarnate. Wind raged at her back, and she accelerated wildly, flying directly toward the wagon.

“Haaaaah! Diiiiiie!”

Using the unicorn’s head as a stepping stool, she swiftly charged forward. Before I could react, she was within inches of me, and dodging was no longer an option.

Wait! Is this how I die?! Without even knowing what’s happening?! My thoughts raced in the face of death. Why? echoed over and over in my mind, along with Who the hell is she? and Did I do something to her? Is that why she wants to kill me?

There was no time to voice any of my questions. The silver-haired girl’s blade was about to pierce my abdomen.

Ahhhhhhhh! Am I gonna die?!

Just as I was about to scream in terror, however—

“NEGATIVE EMOTION EXPLOSION. SOUL!”

A malicious voice echoed in my heart. Immediately, I went into homicidal maniac mode.

“Eek!” the girl yelped.

Next thing I knew, I was twisting the hand the girl was holding her dagger with, hard. I grabbed her by the collar with one hand, then dragged her out of the wagon.

She moaned and groaned, but my body was not letting up. My knee pressed down on her chest, and my free hand drew the blade at my hip. And thus, the sword plunged toward the girl’s pale throat—

“Stop it, Muramasa, you idiot!” I yelled internally, putting all of my strength into keeping my arm at bay, barely stopping the blade from reaching her neck.

Oh. Oh thank god, I thought. Still full of aetherborn souls, Muramasa seemingly couldn’t take complete control of me. I didn’t have to be a murderer. All good.

“Eeeeek!” the girl shrieked in terror. A moment later, she began to tremble, tears spilling from her eyes as she realized she’d been about to get killed.

Seriously? I was the one who should’ve been crying! I’d almost peed my pants!

But all right, my mentor Iris was there, after all. I put on my best stoic hero face, then asked, “Who the hell are you? Why were you trying to kill me?”

“Eep!” my attacker squeaked. She didn’t answer, only stared at me, wide-eyed and shaking.

Also, I was pretty sure I had managed to avoid soiling myself (barely). So what was that strange smell?

Oh. Uh, sorry.

“Let her go, Crow,” Iris said, tapping me on the shoulder. She checked to make sure I wasn’t injured, then let out a relieved sigh. “That move demonstrated amazing technique. Well done!”

Not that I minded the praise, but that had been Muramasa, not me.

“Now, then,” Iris began, confiscating the girl’s dagger. “Vita. Mind explaining what in the world you were trying to do?!”

“Eeeeeek!” the girl shrieked in response.

Iris glared at her, with the scariest gaze I’d ever seen. She was really pissed.

“Iris, who is this girl?” I asked.

“Oh, that’s Vita von Kaambl,” Iris explained. “The ill-tempered colleague I was just telling you about.”